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New to climbing sticks - securest attachment method

Crotalus

Member
Joined
Oct 11, 2020
Messages
99
New to saddles and sticks. I don’t like heights and never feel very comfortable in my climbing stands. I am hoping that the security of the saddle will help with some of my jitters. The big challenge now is getting up the tree. I am planning to use hawk heliums and was wondering what is the most secure way of attaching them to the tree. I am not a small guy, 5’-9” and 260 lbs so keeping the sticks solidly in place is top priority.

thanks
Joe
 
The attachment buckle that comes with it will be more secure than most “upgrades”. The upgrades are usually for weight and noise reduction. You could always throw on a ratchet strap for an even more secure fit, but also even more noise and weight.
 
Wear you linesman and use a tether with it. Thats what i did at first til i got comfortable. Safe as it gets. Put coozie neoprene around the buckles to quiet em down. The cam straps definitely seem the most secure. U could use cam cleats but that would cost ya more than the sticks. Once u get used to it u should be fine. I jump outta airplanes for fun though so cant relate too much to the heights thing.
 
Read the directions, it talks about feeling comfortable and what you should be doing. But, in a nutshell:

Attach 1 stick.
Detach stick and store.

Attach 1 stick
Put on lineman's belt and go to 1st step.
Get comfortable.
Climb down.
Detach stick and store.

Do this same routine for the next 2 steps until you are on top of 1st stick.

Now you start putting up the next stick when you are either on top step or middle step and start this all over for the next steps.

In the end you will be at the top. You will have put the bottom stick on and off the tree 13 times. You will have put the 2nd stick on 9 times. The 3rd stick on 6 times. And the 4 stick on 3 times. For my wife, we got her 4 sticks. 30" for stick and 15" between mean 45" per stick, 4th stick put her 15' to too step, the. She is using a Primal step with Perch and a ROS about a foot above that.

As for comfort at height. I had her set her whole platform at the top of the 1st stick, she was 4.5' off the ground and felt super comfortable.

We did the 1 stick comfort thing for the first 2 attempts, then carried the 2nd as an option for 1 round, the. Went 2 sticks with and option. Then 3 sticks with the option was about 10 trips up the tree. 4th stick she said she was good on the 1st attempt.

So, baby steps. Be comfortable. And remember, you are your best safety feature.

Sent from my Pixel 4 using Tapatalk
 
I have a horrible fear of falling and hitting the ground. I practiced with one sticks and platform for a few weeks. When I went to 4 sticks I didn’t really notice the height until I was a tied in. The saddle, linesman belt and tether are much easier than hang on’s in my opinion. I do use the buckles that came with the sticks.
 
I have full size helium's and using the buckles so far for me are the most secure. Im trying the versa straps now and it seems every tree in my woods is a hair to big or to small and I end up with a stick that makes noise and never sets tight. I am interested in trying the cam cleats though as I think that would be very similar to the buckle but at $90+ for 3 I'm holding out for now.

What sucks is I just sold my sailboat before learning of the cam cleats and had 5 spare harkins in a box
 
I have full size helium's and using the buckles so far for me are the most secure. Im trying the versa straps now and it seems every tree in my woods is a hair to big or to small and I end up with a stick that makes noise and never sets tight. I am interested in trying the cam cleats though as I think that would be very similar to the buckle but at $90+ for 3 I'm holding out for now.

What sucks is I just sold my sailboat before learning of the cam cleats and had 5 spare harkins in a box

the loosens of the sticks is my concern. As long as I can keep them solid to the tree I think I’ll be able to get comfortable with them.

Bought one full length stick to try out. I’m good at the top of it now. Will add the next step and then the next etc and get comfortable at each height before going further up.

definitely using lineman and tether going up the tree. Always used a tether while going up with the climber so I am used to that.

thanks for all the advice. I’ll stick with the stick buckles for mow.
 
I'm new so take other people's advice over mine ... but one thing that helped me was understanding that a little movement the first time you put weight one a stick or platform is normal until the stick settles, i.e. digs a little deeper into the tree and maybe slides a little down putting more tension on the strap. I found that getting comfortable with the lineman belt and having a good quality lineman belt I could really trust also really helped.
 
Factory straps with cam buckles are generally the most secure and tightest you can get. Other methods can be close, sometimes very close, such as the rope mod or running daisy chains in a truckers hitch configuration.

The key is to get whatever attachment method as tight as you can then be sure to set the stick securely before you ever take a step onto it. Pull out the bottom and pull down sharply. When climbing, be careful to not pull the sticks away from the tree.

When first starting out, run a tether and be securely tied in to it. Move it up as you go. The lineman’s rope will help to stabilize you as well as free you hands up as you work. It is NOT as good for catching you as a tether moved up as you go.
 
For hawk heliums, I agree that straps are the way to get them most secure. A ratchet strap or OCB would get them tighter than the stick cam buckle. That said, my heliums do not stick to the tree as well as other sticks out there. EWO, shikars, beast sticks and others all have better standoffs.

Somebody on here (edit: @Hunter260) has a cool video showing how he rotated the bottom of the stick to about 4:00 position, then tightened down the strap and levered the stick back into place straight up. Then you still have to pull down on the stick to set it. I tried it and definitely got the straps tighter but took a bit of finagling. It would be worth you giving this a shot though if you don’t mind the finagling while standing on your second stick...
 
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As explained before, the helium straps are the easier to use correctly and to attain a secure method. Having said that, choosing the correct tree is very important too if you are starting. Attaching a stick to a leaning tree or to a tree with irregular trunk is more challenging.

Also, if you are not a fan of heights (I've always felt quite unease up in a tree), the most challenging situation will be if you have to pass a branch and definitely when transitioning from stick to platform.
 
I have a set of the out on a limb sticks on order. I have my saddle and I am waiting on the sticks and platform. I hope they get here soon so I can practice.
 
Update: I have actually tried the buckle-less method a few times practicing near the ground and have had good luck with it. Haven’t tried it on second or higher stick yet but it worked well on one stick for hanging game cameras.
 
For my first year of saddle hunting I replaced the straps with 1/4” Amsteel. It’s bigger diameter than is necessary but grips very well, feels more like a rope. Overall for me it’s easier to use than the straps and definitely less noisy. I keep each Amsteel line wrapped on each stick, stows very nicely.

Having practiced several times and then about dozen sits I’ve gained a lot of confidence in this setup. And seated properly it doesn’t budge AT ALL even when I’m fidgeting around on the top step. And I weigh what you weigh.

The trick is, once I bring the line around - level with the button and as snug as I can using my chest or forehead to apply pressure to the stick up against the tree - I bring the tag end up underneath the line securing the stick to tree with a “pop”, wrap the the tag end around the button and bring the tag end up underneath the line for a second “pop”. Then a simple simple half hitch. Seat by pulling down firmly. When you first start climbing there is only the slightest give (if done correctly), that’s when you know it’s right.

Here’s the video I watched to learn how to make the Amsteel lines and how to use them.



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